| 3.Population |
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Japan's total population stood at
127.5 million(*1) as of September 1, 2003, ranking ninth in
the world.(*2) Population has more than doubled since the first
national census in 1920, when it was about 56 million.
However, population growth has slowed in recent years. The annual
growth rate was 0.29% in 2001, considerably lower than the world
average of 1.5% in the five-year period ending in 2000. (*3)
In 2000, Japan's population density was 341.4 persons per square
kilometer, one of the highest in the world.(*4) By comparison,
population density was 882 persons per square kilometer in Bangladesh,
472 in the Republic of Korea, 333 in Belgium, 242 in Britain,
132 in China, and 29 in the United States. (*5)
Life Expectancy
Greatest rate of longevity in the world
Greatest rate of longevity in the world The average life expectancy
at birth was 78.32 years for males and 85.23 years for females
(2002), representing respective increases of about 30 years
in age over the past six decades.(*6) (The figures stood at
47 years for men and 50 years for women in 1935.) This sharp
increase is attributed to the fact that infant mortality rates
and deaths from epidemics, tuberculosis, and other diseases
have declined significantly.
Both Japanese men and women have the greatest longevity in the
world; in particular, Japanese women have ranked highest for
the past 18 years in a row.(*7)
The average death rate, which stood at 10.9 per 1,000 in 1950,
was 7.8 per 1000 in 2002.(*8) In 1950 there were 28.1 births
per 1000 people. This rate slowly declined to a low of 9.2 in
2002. On the other hand, the total fertility rate (measured
by the number of children that the average woman can expect
to bear in her lifetime) has declined from 3.65 in 1950 to 1.32
in 2002.(*9)
The Aging of Society
Japan's society is aging at a rapid pace. In 1950, children
(up to 14 years of age) accounted for 35.4% of the total population,
adults (15 - 64 years) for 59.7%, and the elderly (65 years
and older) for 4.9%. As of 2002 children accounted for 14.2%
of the total population, adults for 67.3%, and the elderly for
18.5%.(*10)
Centenarian Club
The number of people 100 or older reached 20,561 as of September
2003, exceeding 20,000 for the first time on record, according
to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.(*11) It was the
33rd consecutive year in which a new record was set. The number
increased 2,627 from a year earlier, the largest gain ever.
The number of centenarians topped 1,000 for the first time in
1981 and exceeded 10,000 in 1998. The 2003 figure is 134 times
greater than the 153 in 1963, when the ministry started compiling
statistics following the enactment of the Welfare Law for the
Aged. At the top of the list is 113-year-old Ura Koyama, a woman
living in Fukuoka Prefecture.
The women in the centenarian club accounted for 84.6% of the
total. The percentage has been above 80% since 1992. (*12)
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*1. http://www.stat.go.jp/english/index.htm
*2.
http://www.unfpa.org/swp/2003/pdf/english/swp2003_eng.pdf
*3. http://www.stat.go.jp/info/guide/asu/2003/10.htm
*4. http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/handbook/c02cont.htm#cha2_6
*5. http://www.stat.go.jp/data/sekai/zuhyou/0203.xls
*6. http://wwwdbtk.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/youran/data14k/1-47.xls
*7. http://wwwdbtk.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/youran/data14k/1-49.xls
*8. http://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/database/db-hw/populate/pop3.html
*9. http://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/database/db-hw/populate/pop4.html
*10. http://www.stat.go.jp/data/nenkan/zuhyou/y0208000.xls
*11. http://www.mhlw.go.jp/kaiken/daijin/2003/09/k0909.html
*12. http://wwwdbtk.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/youran/data14k/4-41.xls |
Foreign Residents and Visitors
Foreign residents in Japan numbered 1,851,758
as of December 2002. The largest groups by nationality were
Koreans (625,422), Chinese (424,282), Brazilians (268,332),
Filipinos (169,359), and Americans (47,970), in order.(*1)
The number of foreigners visiting Japan has risen as the country
has become more active in international trade; also due to growth
in tourism. There were 5,771,975 such visitors in 2002. By nationality,
the largest numbers hailed from the Republic of Korea (1,472,096),
Taiwan (909,654), the United States (755,196), China (527,796),
Britain (225,074) and the Philippines (197,136).(*2) The number
of foreign students coming to Japan for study reached a record
high of 109,508 in May 2003, achieving for the first time the
government's target set in 1983 to receive 100,000 students
yearly from abroad. By nationality, the largest numbers came
from China (70,814), the Republic of Korea (15,871), Taiwan
(4,235), Malaysia (2,002), and Thailand (1,641).(*3)
Refugees
Japan has been criticized for its reluctance to accept asylum-seekers.
The only exception to date is the acceptance of the Indochinese
refugees who began to reach Japan's shores following the collapse
of the regime in Saigon, former South Vietnam, in 1975. The
Japanese government has assisted these refugees by providing
both temporary shelter and granting permanent residence. As
of December 2002, 10,941 have become permanent residents.(*4)
The Japanese government began to review its refugee policy after
a group of North Koreans who sought asylum in the Japanese Consulate
in Shenyang, China, were forcibly removed from the grounds by
Chinese authorities in May 2002. With an aim to ameliorate Japan's
image abroad as being a country that does not welcome refugees,
the government drew up a new bill which eases the requirements
to be fulfilled by foreign nationals seeking refugee status
in this nation. The bill, however, did not pass the Diet during
the ordinary session in 2003 and is to be deliberated during
the 2004 ordinary Diet session.
Under the current law, which requires requests for refugee status
to be made within 60 days of arrival in Japan, applications
are often rejected because of the strict time limit. In 2002,
250 asylum-seekers applied to the Japanese government for refugee
status, but only 14 of them were approved.
Illegal Residents
The number of foreigners working in Japan on
tourist visas, an illegal practice, has been decreasing on account
of the sluggish economy and tighter immigration control. As of
January 2003, the number of those overstaying their visas in Japan
stood at 220,552. This was down about 78,094 (-26.1%) from the
peak of 298,646 in May 1993. It was also 3,515 less (-1.6%) than
the figure of 224,067 in January 2002, showing that the overall
trend continues to show a decrease. By nationality, 49,874 Koreans
from the ROK (22.6%), 30,100 Filipinos (13.6%), 29,676 Chinese
(excluding Taiwanese; 13.5%), 15,693 Thais (7.1%), 9,442 Malaysians
(4.3%), and 9,126 Taiwanese (4.1%) had overstayed their visas.(*5)
Typically, men are hired as laborers, such as construction workers,
and women as bar hostesses and entertainers.
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*1. http://www.moj.go.jp/PRESS/030530-1/030530-1-3.html
*2. http://www.moj.go.jp/PRESS/030328-2/030328-2.html
*3. http://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/houdou/15/11/03111102.htm
*4. http://www.rhq.gr.jp/know/ukeire.htm
*5. http://www.moj.go.jp/PRESS/030328-1/030328-1.html |
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